NASSAU COUNTY, Fla. — A Georgia man was arrested in Florida on suspicion he accepted insurance premium payments from two clients for insurance policies that he did not purchase.
The Florida Division of Insurance Fraud announced the arrest of William Rodeffer, of Folkston, Georgia, on Thursday.
Officials said Rodeffer accepted nearly $40,000 in premiums payments from the two policies, but the customers never had coverage.
Rodeffer was licensed in Georgia and moved to the Yulee area, where he opened a second office. He was denied a license because of his criminal background. However, Rodeffer continued to sell insurance policies in Florida for nearly three years, officials said.
One victim was a 91-year-old Floridian who believed he purchased a workers’ compensation policy. The victim was left to cover around $30,000 in medical bills and lost wages when a worker was injured and filed a claim, realizing the policy didn’t exist.
The second client, American Legion Post 283, was led to believe it held general liability property insurance coverage after providing multiple premium payments to Rodeffer, said officials.
Rodeffer is awaiting trial in Georgia for similar charges. He had been charged in 2014 by the Nassau County Sheriff’s Office for a separate but similar offense, officials said.
Rodeffer was booked on Feb. 9 into the Duval County Pre-Trial Detention Center with a bond of more than $200,000. He is charged with one count of grand theft from a person 65 years of age or older, grand theft, scheme to defraud, and five counts of conducting insurance-related business while being unlicensed.
Investigators believe there are other victims, specifically senior citizens, in Florida.
Anyone who may have conducted insurance-related business with William David Rodeffer III is asked to call DIF’s toll-free Fraud Tip Hotline at 800-378-0445. Callers can choose to remain anonymous, and information leading to a conviction may be eligible for a cash reward through the Anti-Fraud Reward Program.
Cox Media Group
